By Guy Taylor
Lenders to Cazoo, the online car retailer, have enlisted bankers to lead talks with the group about a £510m debt restructuring.
According to reports today from Sky News’ Mark Kleinmann, funds with more than £500m held in the London-based firm, have enlisted PJT Partners to advise them on negotiations with the company.
Cazoo has faced a torrid couple of years since it went public in 2021, following a $1bn merger with the special purpose acquisition company Ajax I.
The firm’s shares fell a staggering 95 per cent in the year up to April, due to a combination of rising interest rates, inflation and supply chain problems.
Hundreds of staff were laid off and in January Cazoo’s founder and former CEO, Alex Chesterman, was replaced by Paul Whitehead.
It followed just a few months after Cazoo shut its European Union operations down, as it attempted to scale back and focus on the UK side of the business.
The firm did see a turnaround this April, as profits boomed, with Whitehead stating that the restructuring was starting to “bear fruit.”
Sky News reported that a source close to Cazoo had said that it has over £200m cash on its balance sheet, meaning that there is plenty of time to negotiate with noteholders.
Cazoo and PJT Partners were both contacted for comment.
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